I Don’t Understand This Forum...

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liquid360

Junior Audioholic

I’m new to this forum. I just recently purchased an entirely new home theater and was looking for some advice on some aspects. Having spent most of life being relatively broke, i was showing off as i was proud of making such purchases. Not a single person I know in real life cares about such things. When you get something new, sometimes a little showing off isn’t bad. In a world without a little showing off, these forums would collapse.
I have spent a couple weeks reading posts here. A lot of us make these purchases and want to feel good about what we bought, beyond the joy of simply performance. You want to share your excitement and often those in our lives simply aren’t into audio video hardware. It’s a part of any forum. Here, from what I’ve seen, you make such posts at your peril. More times than not, you’ll be labeled a fanboy and shamed for having purchased X and told you wasted your money and should’ve bought X and we would’ve told you to buy X had you asked before purchase. I don’t see how this is constructive at all.
The next gen audiophiles believe in internet brands because they see the charts and trust them implicitly and like believing that cutting out the middleman means a better product for less money. Those preferring store brands are buying what they know and what sounds good to their ears. Each argues their point. To me, the internet brand supporters come on like members of a cult with the absolute belief that non believers are wrong and shall be shamed because they have charts/graphs which alone shall wisely dictate purchases. They will even invite you into their homes to share The Truth with their fellow man. Scientology anyone? Amway?
I read these threads and they make me cringe. Happily, my system is complete and I didn’t need that much advice anyways. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, has different tastes and hear things differently. Different aspects are important to different people. I take build quality into consideration far more than any chart. I lack the palate to discern a ‘57 Chateaux Margaux from ‘63 Chateau Petrus. I could only tell you what I liked.
Analogy Alert... I recently decided I wanted to buy an exotic car, a dream I’ve had since my youth. I went into this without a preference of ny specific car. I test drove them all over a 24hr period, beat day of my life. When it comes to “Supercars” the performance numbers are all within fractions of a second of each other. What kind of a lunatic would ever pick such a car based solely upon charts, graphs, and numbers? And never having driven one? No way. Speed, horsepower, torque, 0-60, 0-124, etc... once you get above a certain price point, they are all incredibly fast. Technologically, these are the best cars that have ever been made . You test drive the cars and pick the one that speaks to you. Even in this world, you will run into guys who will argue passionately that you made a mistake and that the car they love is the superior car and give you numbers which they feel should assist in proving to you that you made a mistake and your opinions are wrong. They truly can’t fathom how anyone could ever disagree and claim “you can’t argue numbers”. Ah, but you can. If you then respond and ask why do that to anyone? They will claim so that others won’t make the mistake of buying what they think is best. Hearing bitter arguments over OPINIONS... I just don’t get it. Buying an exotic car is no different than any other purchase. Buy what you like. However, if you come here expecting to find some kind of fellowship and support of your opinion... which is different, forget it. This is the wrong forum. If you want to share what you’ve bought and get berated for having the wrong opinions? This is where you should come, unless of course internet brands are your thing.
I LOVE exotic cars. They are beautiful, exciting, extreme, and insanely over the top. The engineering that goes into them is not to be believed. I go to car shows and gatherings to look at them. It’s fascinating to talk to others about this shared interest . I certainly have my favorites. At all the shows and all the gatherings, not once, not ever, has it, nor would it occur to me to tell someone they bought the wrong car, that X has a better power curve or 0-60 time. “Hey man, that’s a nice Bugatti, but if you were smart, you could’ve spent a fraction of what you paid and gotten a much faster car...” Arguing which car is best is insane. That would take a level of stupefying arrogance I simply don’t possess.
The only thing worse than being a “fanboy” is calling someone a “fanboy”.
It’s obvious, to my anyways, when someone is simply proud of their purchase. If you don’t like it just move on. Don’t use it as an opportunity to tell them that your opinions and priorities are better and then claim it’s “teaching”. You simply want what they want. To believe they made a good choice. If their choice was wrong? You believe your opinions are better?
Most of us don’t have the knowledge to argue performance numbers, for or against. And these numbers do not play a role in such a purchase, unless your ear contains a computer chip. What sounds better to you likely doesn’t to them. Using numbers to claim superiority doesn’t take anything into account beyond what a computer “hears”. Claiming otherwise is disingenuous at best.
It’s F’ing pathetic that I took the time to make this post, but I needed to vent. I’m assuming I’ll get torn a new one now, but c’est la vive. I’m good with that.

bigkrazy155

Audioholic

I haven't stalked you or anything on here so I'm likely missing a large part of the picture you are painting, but I have seen and enjoyed a couple of the threads that you have shared. I certainly didn't note any majority of pejorative comments about your B&W, McIntosh or Ferrari.

You are right that only a single person's ears can determine what they like, but there's also an element of science involved. There's nothing wrong with comparing response graphs etc., just as there's nothing wrong with buying expensive. I don't think you should be derided for your high spending, but I also hate to see you deride others by comparing them to cult members. Can't we all just get along?

Anyway, thank you for your contributions to the forum! I've enjoyed your posts, pics and living vicariously just a little bit. Enjoy the hell out of your new toys, I'm happy for you!

killdozzer

Audioholic Field Marshall

@liquid360 you shouldn't try to understand it, you should read it with your heart!

Look, I hope I wasn't among those who offended you. Not that it would brake my heart, but I'd prefer not to.

Don't go with analogies. Exotic (in cars or otherwise) and value for money are very different. Of course, you could scale it and say there's value for money on all levels, but after a certain price, it's not really value for money, it could be perhaps same value for a fraction less, but still overpriced.

Build quality is always well regarded here, but not in a sense that it should endure a German Tiger running over it. Sherman? Well, perhaps.

A lot has been explored and is well known in many of the components we buy for audio reproduction, so giving a lot for a brand name and not getting any real value for it, does seem a tad strange.

HOWEVER, people here know about pride of ownership, they just don't let it loose!

You shouldn't feel hurt when someone tries to save your money. Look at it as they're caring for you and it'll feel much better.

This is a sort of "top performance for as little as you need to spend" site, that's just what it is, don't hate it for it. People here know for expensive and don't mind if you can afford it, but if you were really broke for most of your life and then buy Hegel or Exposure that do nothing better than a Denon AVR... Well, most of us (not all) would think you threw your hard earned cash.

LATER EDIT: also it's free, you're getting highly professional tips free of charge and it might save your money free of charge, so your stabs at the staff here for being insensitive and not "open to ones subjective likes and dislikes" misses by a long shot.

Auditor55

Audioholic Chief

I’m new to this forum. I just recently purchased an entirely new home theater and was looking for some advice on some aspects. Having spent most of life being relatively broke, i was showing off as i was proud of making such purchases. Not a single person I know in real life cares about such things. When you get something new, sometimes a little showing off isn’t bad. In a world without a little showing off, these forums would collapse.
I have spent a couple weeks reading posts here. A lot of us make these purchases and want to feel good about what we bought, beyond the joy of simply performance. You want to share your excitement and often those in our lives simply aren’t into audio video hardware. It’s a part of any forum. Here, from what I’ve seen, you make such posts at your peril. More times than not, you’ll be labeled a fanboy and shamed for having purchased X and told you wasted your money and should’ve bought X and we would’ve told you to buy X had you asked before purchase. I don’t see how this is constructive at all.
The next gen audiophiles believe in internet brands because they see the charts and trust them implicitly and like believing that cutting out the middleman means a better product for less money. Those preferring store brands are buying what they know and what sounds good to their ears. Each argues their point. To me, the internet brand supporters come on like members of a cult with the absolute belief that non believers are wrong and shall be shamed because they have charts/graphs which alone shall wisely dictate purchases. They will even invite you into their homes to share The Truth with their fellow man. Scientology anyone? Amway?
I read these threads and they make me cringe. Happily, my system is complete and I didn’t need that much advice anyways. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, has different tastes and hear things differently. Different aspects are important to different people. I take build quality into consideration far more than any chart. I lack the palate to discern a ‘57 Chateaux Margaux from ‘63 Chateau Petrus. I could only tell you what I liked.
Analogy Alert... I recently decided I wanted to buy an exotic car, a dream I’ve had since my youth. I went into this without a preference of ny specific car. I test drove them all over a 24hr period, beat day of my life. When it comes to “Supercars” the performance numbers are all within fractions of a second of each other. What kind of a lunatic would ever pick such a car based solely upon charts, graphs, and numbers? And never having driven one? No way. Speed, horsepower, torque, 0-60, 0-124, etc... once you get above a certain price point, they are all incredibly fast. Technologically, these are the best cars that have ever been made . You test drive the cars and pick the one that speaks to you. Even in this world, you will run into guys who will argue passionately that you made a mistake and that the car they love is the superior car and give you numbers which they feel should assist in proving to you that you made a mistake and your opinions are wrong. They truly can’t fathom how anyone could ever disagree and claim “you can’t argue numbers”. Ah, but you can. If you then respond and ask why do that to anyone? They will claim so that others won’t make the mistake of buying what they think is best. Hearing bitter arguments over OPINIONS... I just don’t get it. Buying an exotic car is no different than any other purchase. Buy what you like. However, if you come here expecting to find some kind of fellowship and support of your opinion... which is different, forget it. This is the wrong forum. If you want to share what you’ve bought and get berated for having the wrong opinions? This is where you should come, unless of course internet brands are your thing.
I LOVE exotic cars. They are beautiful, exciting, extreme, and insanely over the top. The engineering that goes into them is not to be believed. I go to car shows and gatherings to look at them. It’s fascinating to talk to others about this shared interest . I certainly have my favorites. At all the shows and all the gatherings, not once, not ever, has it, nor would it occur to me to tell someone they bought the wrong car, that X has a better power curve or 0-60 time. “Hey man, that’s a nice Bugatti, but if you were smart, you could’ve spent a fraction of what you paid and gotten a much faster car...” Arguing which car is best is insane. That would take a level of stupefying arrogance I simply don’t possess.
The only thing worse than being a “fanboy” is calling someone a “fanboy”.
It’s obvious, to my anyways, when someone is simply proud of their purchase. If you don’t like it just move on. Don’t use it as an opportunity to tell them that your opinions and priorities are better and then claim it’s “teaching”. You simply want what they want. To believe they made a good choice. If their choice was wrong? You believe your opinions are better?
Most of us don’t have the knowledge to argue performance numbers, for or against. And these numbers do not play a role in such a purchase, unless your ear contains a computer chip. What sounds better to you likely doesn’t to them. Using numbers to claim superiority doesn’t take anything into account beyond what a computer “hears”. Claiming otherwise is disingenuous at best.
It’s F’ing pathetic that I took the time to make this post, but I needed to vent. I’m assuming I’ll get torn a new one now, but c’est la vive. I’m good with that.

You have to understand, this forum is founded more upon the objectivist base as a opposed to most AV forums that tend to lean more towards the subjectivist side. So if you come in here showing off and bragging about how much money spent on cables, amps and CD players, etc and making up claims of how great it sounds over other products and brands, you're going to be challenged, straight up!.

BMXTRIX

Audioholic Spartan

So, I took a look at your initial thread, and most of my responses tend to focus on negative buying aspects. That is, what could be improved upon, if at all possible, as many people come to sites like this for information ahead of a purchase. Some do come to get a pat on the back after they've made a purchase, and they sometimes get slammed. I've seen it on this forum where people get very harshly slammed in ways that I don't agree with.

My bottom line is that people should be happy with whatever the heck their budget and current mentality led them to purchase. Whether that's a $50 set of speakers or a $10,000+ surround sound setup.

I definitely do have my criticisms of your system which I would have addressed ahead of time, and I would have stuck to my area of specialization, which is not amplifiers. I personally find B&W speakers to be really overpriced... and I would still buy a set of them because they are gorgeous in their craftmanship. So, screw the rest.

My concern, less than criticism, would be about the projector and the screen. But, those concerns would not be about trying to make anyone feel bad and if you own them, then it hardly matters at this point.

I do bring this up as a talking point though, because the fact that there are concerns and you may have liked to have known those concerns ahead of making a rather expensive purchase, and they are founded on the experiences of hundreds of others as well as first hand knowledge, might have been useful in directing your purchase to something similarly spendy, but more reliable or higher in quality.

Unlike exotic cars which have a lot of personal preference, audio and video has measurable qualities which matter. Likewise, they have reliability and longevity quality that matters. Back in the day 'RUNCO' projectors were a hallmark product in the home theater market. $10,000+ projectors (minimum) with quality that was second to none... WHEN THEY WORKED. I saw a nearly 100% failure rate on their products. They failed ALL the time. It got so bad that I called them out when they came in to do a sales presentation to our staff. I called out their slow speed, their constant failure rate. They didn't respond well and within a year a chain of 17+ stores had switched from Runco to another manufacturer that had a better track record.

In the case of your setup, the Sony projector looks amazing, but Sony has a serious issue with LCoS chip contrast degradation impacting quality over the years. I would be sure to keep an eye out for that. This is not an issue that similarly priced JVC models have an issue with. Likewise, nobody should ever buy a ALR screen if they can avoid it. ALR screens, including the Black Diamond, significantly degrade image quality.

But, when I say these things, after you buy them, it does impact your happiness and joy. I understand you just want a pat on the back and shared excitement. Hell, over the speakers, the amps, and the rest, I'm super stoked for you. I love the sound of JL subwoofers, even if they are crazy expensive, they have incredibly tight and clean sound from what I've heard. The projector itself, when new, is amazingly good looking, and if it holds up, will remain one of the best on the market.

But, yes, people will criticize as well, and I think that some will be somewhat mean about it. How you respond to that can often just goad them on and make things worse. I've literally seen people throw good money after bad on poor decisions, then get VERY mad when they get called to task on it. I mean, seriously, don't put down people with years of experience in the field because you didn't take two days to do real research.

I think your point on the cars is excellent. Most people don't look at the numbers then just go test drive. Most people these days read reviews, they may jump on forums and ask for some personal opinions of cars and specific models. People will do their homework before they drop $20,000+ on a vehicle. I would guess you may have done the same. I know when I was looking at a 4-seater, automatic, convertible I was looking at a used Mercedes and a used Porsche 911. Both were in the similar price ballpark to each other. But, doing my homework, and living on a budget, the word was the same: The 911 has the lowest maintenance costs, by far, of any of the 'supercars' and completely trounces Mercedes in terms of reliability. So, here I am 10 years later, and my 911 has required little more than oil changes and standard upkeep.

Why would someone come to A/V forums AFTER a major purchase instead of before that purchase? That is one thing that always blows me away.

I do remember as well, a client who was an athlete on a major sports team. He had bought absolute top dollar A/V equipment and was having major issues with it. I asked him how he had ended up with the equipment he had. He explained that he had wanted the best. I told him, flat out, that the equipment he bought was absolutely some of the most expensive, but it was not reliable, and if that was his goal, then he would have to replace a great deal of it as there was no way to turn unreliable expensive equipment into quality reliable gear. He wasn't happy, and I don't think we did much work with him, but I wouldn't have wanted to anyway if he insisted upon keeping the gear he had. Nobody was going to make it work. Likewise, if I bought a Mercedes and it kept breaking down on me. I would have been infuriated.

Buying expensive quality is well worth it. Buying expensive because it's expensive and because you can afford it can be a bad way to go if you aren't ready to accept that you may have to replace certain pieces because they weren't expensive quality, but were just expensive.

Those in the know may be critical of those decisions because they don't have the money to spend on such things.

Danzilla31

Audioholic Samurai

I’m new to this forum. I just recently purchased an entirely new home theater and was looking for some advice on some aspects. Having spent most of life being relatively broke, i was showing off as i was proud of making such purchases. Not a single person I know in real life cares about such things. When you get something new, sometimes a little showing off isn’t bad. In a world without a little showing off, these forums would collapse.
I have spent a couple weeks reading posts here. A lot of us make these purchases and want to feel good about what we bought, beyond the joy of simply performance. You want to share your excitement and often those in our lives simply aren’t into audio video hardware. It’s a part of any forum. Here, from what I’ve seen, you make such posts at your peril. More times than not, you’ll be labeled a fanboy and shamed for having purchased X and told you wasted your money and should’ve bought X and we would’ve told you to buy X had you asked before purchase. I don’t see how this is constructive at all.
The next gen audiophiles believe in internet brands because they see the charts and trust them implicitly and like believing that cutting out the middleman means a better product for less money. Those preferring store brands are buying what they know and what sounds good to their ears. Each argues their point. To me, the internet brand supporters come on like members of a cult with the absolute belief that non believers are wrong and shall be shamed because they have charts/graphs which alone shall wisely dictate purchases. They will even invite you into their homes to share The Truth with their fellow man. Scientology anyone? Amway?
I read these threads and they make me cringe. Happily, my system is complete and I didn’t need that much advice anyways. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, has different tastes and hear things differently. Different aspects are important to different people. I take build quality into consideration far more than any chart. I lack the palate to discern a ‘57 Chateaux Margaux from ‘63 Chateau Petrus. I could only tell you what I liked.
Analogy Alert... I recently decided I wanted to buy an exotic car, a dream I’ve had since my youth. I went into this without a preference of ny specific car. I test drove them all over a 24hr period, beat day of my life. When it comes to “Supercars” the performance numbers are all within fractions of a second of each other. What kind of a lunatic would ever pick such a car based solely upon charts, graphs, and numbers? And never having driven one? No way. Speed, horsepower, torque, 0-60, 0-124, etc... once you get above a certain price point, they are all incredibly fast. Technologically, these are the best cars that have ever been made . You test drive the cars and pick the one that speaks to you. Even in this world, you will run into guys who will argue passionately that you made a mistake and that the car they love is the superior car and give you numbers which they feel should assist in proving to you that you made a mistake and your opinions are wrong. They truly can’t fathom how anyone could ever disagree and claim “you can’t argue numbers”. Ah, but you can. If you then respond and ask why do that to anyone? They will claim so that others won’t make the mistake of buying what they think is best. Hearing bitter arguments over OPINIONS... I just don’t get it. Buying an exotic car is no different than any other purchase. Buy what you like. However, if you come here expecting to find some kind of fellowship and support of your opinion... which is different, forget it. This is the wrong forum. If you want to share what you’ve bought and get berated for having the wrong opinions? This is where you should come, unless of course internet brands are your thing.
I LOVE exotic cars. They are beautiful, exciting, extreme, and insanely over the top. The engineering that goes into them is not to be believed. I go to car shows and gatherings to look at them. It’s fascinating to talk to others about this shared interest . I certainly have my favorites. At all the shows and all the gatherings, not once, not ever, has it, nor would it occur to me to tell someone they bought the wrong car, that X has a better power curve or 0-60 time. “Hey man, that’s a nice Bugatti, but if you were smart, you could’ve spent a fraction of what you paid and gotten a much faster car...” Arguing which car is best is insane. That would take a level of stupefying arrogance I simply don’t possess.
The only thing worse than being a “fanboy” is calling someone a “fanboy”.
It’s obvious, to my anyways, when someone is simply proud of their purchase. If you don’t like it just move on. Don’t use it as an opportunity to tell them that your opinions and priorities are better and then claim it’s “teaching”. You simply want what they want. To believe they made a good choice. If their choice was wrong? You believe your opinions are better?
Most of us don’t have the knowledge to argue performance numbers, for or against. And these numbers do not play a role in such a purchase, unless your ear contains a computer chip. What sounds better to you likely doesn’t to them. Using numbers to claim superiority doesn’t take anything into account beyond what a computer “hears”. Claiming otherwise is disingenuous at best.
It’s F’ing pathetic that I took the time to make this post, but I needed to vent. I’m assuming I’ll get torn a new one now, but c’est la vive. I’m good with that.

Hey I'm sorry if you've had some bad impressions or experiences I for one was enjoying helping you figure out which JL sub you were gonna add to the one you already have!
You seem like a genuinely nice guy and I for one am happy with your success lately and oppurtunity to buy what you want and love.
I think one thing to remember is when you open up on a forum with something we are all so passionate about we leave ourselves vulnerable. That's the price of communication.
Sometimes we let the negative in with the positive and that's just the price of connection sometimes we just gotta put our filters on and take the positive that helps us and if the critiquing isn't constructive just let it go.
Hope you stay love to hear you take on your complete system when it's up and running especially with the second sub!

liquid360

Junior Audioholic

Well, perhaps I was entirely wrong. At this point in my life, I really shouldn’t be surprised, not one bit. I wasn’t expecting these responses. They are very much appreciated. I have been treated quite well in the threads I’ve participated in. It was other threads I perused that rubbed me the wrong way. It’s obvious not fair for me to make sweeping generalizations, but I felt it also wrong to mention the threads I was referring to.
I really do appreciate the supportive/positive responses here.
As I said, I’ve never had money. My recent experiences have been surreal and it’s difficult to not be self conscious about it, defensive even. I wouldn’t ever, under circumstances, criticize anyone or make anyone feel somehow inferior. Had I always had money, this situation wouldn’t exist. I wake up every morning and open my garage and think holy f’ing crap... there’s a Ferrari in my garage. I am not bragging.. at least I hope I’m not. I don’t wanna be that guy. I’d have the same reaction if there was a UFO in my garage. “HOLY CRAP THERE’S A UFO IN MY GARAGE!!!” Obviously, this is a first world problem, but seeking advice about purchases has been difficult. I sound like an ass asking about X vs Y when they’re expensive.
Okay, enough of that. Again, I appreciate the supportive responses and I’m sorry if I offended.

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord

Well, perhaps I was entirely wrong. At this point in my life, I really shouldn’t be surprised, not one bit. I wasn’t expecting these responses. They are very much appreciated. I have been treated quite well in the threads I’ve participated in. It was other threads I perused that rubbed me the wrong way. It’s obvious not fair for me to make sweeping generalizations, but I felt it also wrong to mention the threads I was referring to.
I really do appreciate the supportive/positive responses here.
As I said, I’ve never had money. My recent experiences have been surreal and it’s difficult to not be self conscious about it, defensive even. I wouldn’t ever, under circumstances, criticize anyone or make anyone feel somehow inferior. Had I always had money, this situation wouldn’t exist. I wake up every morning and open my garage and think holy f’ing crap... there’s a Ferrari in my garage. I am not bragging.. at least I hope I’m not. I don’t wanna be that guy. I’d have the same reaction if there was a UFO in my garage. “HOLY CRAP THERE’S A UFO IN MY GARAGE!!!” Obviously, this is a first world problem, but seeking advice about purchases has been difficult. I sound like an ass asking about X vs Y when they’re expensive.
Okay, enough of that. Again, I appreciate the supportive responses and I’m sorry if I offended.

Your venting is totally understandable. As you realize, lots of time it depends on the OP, if he/she brags about their expensive gear, that's fine. It is if and when they made statements about the night and day difference they perceived, simply by substituting a 200 W Monolith amp driven by a mid range AVR by a pair of McIntosh preamp/power amp or an Anthem AVP + a high end power amp, as though it is a fact (just a random example I can think of), that when they may get challenged on such claims. Conversely, if they simply emphasized the importance of build quality, reliability, and even the good looks, no one would take any issues. In such case, some would likely congratulate them. Regardless, anyone can challenge anyone's claim, but there is no need to be nasty or even sarcastic. So again, I understand the points you are trying to make.

Irvrobinson

Audioholic Spartan

It is an unfortunate attribute of this forum that any product that isn't in the "optimized for value" category is vilified. Especially in subwoofers, where huge ugly-looking ported black boxes with a cheap finish are what's usually recommended. And two of them. Amps aren't far behind. They all sound the same, you don't need that much power, AVR amp channels are good enough for almost anyone, all DACs are about equal, you don't need balanced interconnects... I could go on and on. Sometimes all of this is true, but a lot of times it just plain isn't. For one thing, ergonomics and build quality do matter to some of us. For some more than others. I just ignore the cheapskates. On the other hand, I'm not prone to posting a thread about my system; you were kind of asking to see the dark side of this forum.

As for your Ferrari, I couldn't be happier for you, and I understand the expenditure. And I'm sure the new Corvette won't be able to hold a candle to it in terms of overall execution and build quality, if anyone has given you crap about that. I've driven other exotic cars, and IMO nothing is like a Ferrari (but I haven't been in a McLaren 570S yet...)

Enjoy your purchases and take this forum for what it's good for: a good place to get technical advice. Everything else is just opinion, mostly from grumpy old men, and it doesn't matter.

liquid360

Junior Audioholic

Absolutely nothing wrong with being a fanboy. It’s the energy expended by fanboys to increase their numbers that I’m not a fanboy of. So long as you admit you’re a fanboy and not claiming your exclusive knowledge of The Truth to create new fanboys... unless of course you want to, just I’m free to bitch, moan, and yell “you kids get off my lawn!”

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Pogre

Audioholic Warlord

Absolutely nothing wrong with being a fanboy. It’s the energy expended by fanboys to increase their numbers that I’m not a fanboy of. So long as you admit you’re a fanboy and not claiming your exclusive knowledge of The Truth to create new fanboys... unless of course you want to, just I’m free to bitch, moan, and yell “you kids get off my lawn!”

Most folks tend to fanboy out on the stuff they own. It's just human nature. I say I'm a fanboy, but I also understand there's better out there. I've recommended SVS quite a lot here, but only when it's relevant to the op's budget/needs.

liquid360

Junior Audioholic

It is an unfortunate attribute of this forum that any product that isn't in the "optimized for value" category is vilified. Especially in subwoofers, where huge ugly-looking ported black boxes with a cheap finish are what's usually recommended. And two of them. Amps aren't far behind. They all sound the same, you don't need that much power, AVR amp channels are good enough for almost anyone, all DACs are about equal, you don't need balanced interconnects... I could go on and on. Sometimes all of this is true, but a lot of times it just plain isn't. For one thing, ergonomics and build quality do matter to some of us. For some more than others. I just ignore the cheapskates. On the other hand, I'm not prone to posting a thread about my system; you were kind of asking to see the dark side of this forum.

As for your Ferrari, I couldn't be happier for you, and I understand the expenditure. And I'm sure the new Corvette won't be able to hold a candle to it in terms of overall execution and build quality, if anyone has given you crap about that. I've driven other exotic cars, and IMO nothing is like a Ferrari (but I haven't been in a McLaren 570S yet...)

Enjoy your purchases and take this forum for what it's good for: a good place to get technical advice. Everything else is just opinion, mostly from grumpy old men, and it doesn't matter.

Really appreciate that response! I feel similarly. I went to West Palm Beach to test drive the cars of my dreams, expecting to buy it and drive it home. It was such a difficult decision. It was between a McLaren 600LT and a 488GTB. I bought the Mclaren. The dealer arranged a room for me to crash and drive home the next day. My iPhone battery died. It was a new car and I had no idea how to get the GPS working. I got totally lost for almost four hours. I have a really bad back. The seats are carbon fiber with a 1/4in of hard foam. Also racing seats so your locked into position. After four hours I was ready to kill myself. Epic track car!!! Maybe the best ever, but as a cruiser? It was a nightmare. Returned next morning and got a 2017 488GTB. I traded that for the 2018 488 Spider I have now. There truly is nothing like a modern Ferrari. Every detail has been seen to. It’s just a stunningly beautiful car.
The photos of the new corvette looked really promising. In person it’s much less so. It’s a terrific car I’m sure, but build quality matters a lot and the warranty on Ferrari is amazing. Seven year comprehensive warranty and all routine maintenance is entirely free through 2025. I’m a Ferrari fanboy now. I wasn’t sure I made the right choice. After a month.. it is epic in every sense of the word. I’ve driven all the exotics under 400k and the biggest problem with them is that they’re not Ferraris

liquid360

Junior Audioholic

Most folks tend to fanboy out on the stuff they own. It's just human nature. I say I'm a fanboy, but I also understand there's better out there. I've recommended SVS quite a lot here, but only when it's relevant to the op's budget/needs.

Junior Audioholic

Should this turn into an addiction, I’ll certainly consider here for advice. The only preamps that I could find and that offer similar features/capabilities is Marantz. To get similar features in a nicer pre you have to seriously spend.

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L

liquid360

Junior Audioholic

Auditor55

Audioholic Chief

Well, perhaps I was entirely wrong. At this point in my life, I really shouldn’t be surprised, not one bit. I wasn’t expecting these responses. They are very much appreciated. I have been treated quite well in the threads I’ve participated in. It was other threads I perused that rubbed me the wrong way. It’s obvious not fair for me to make sweeping generalizations, but I felt it also wrong to mention the threads I was referring to.
I really do appreciate the supportive/positive responses here.
As I said, I’ve never had money. My recent experiences have been surreal and it’s difficult to not be self conscious about it, defensive even. I wouldn’t ever, under circumstances, criticize anyone or make anyone feel somehow inferior. Had I always had money, this situation wouldn’t exist. I wake up every morning and open my garage and think holy f’ing crap... there’s a Ferrari in my garage. I am not bragging.. at least I hope I’m not. I don’t wanna be that guy. I’d have the same reaction if there was a UFO in my garage. “HOLY CRAP THERE’S A UFO IN MY GARAGE!!!” Obviously, this is a first world problem, but seeking advice about purchases has been difficult. I sound like an ass asking about X vs Y when they’re expensive.
Okay, enough of that. Again, I appreciate the supportive responses and I’m sorry if I offended.